Electric-railway system.



PATENTED JAN. 3,1905.

GQ L. CAMPBELL.

ELECTRIC RAILWAY SYSTEM. APPLIOATION FILED 001-. 11. 1902. RENEWED JULY 8, 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

0. 779,204. PATENTED JAN. 3, 1905.

G. L. CAMPBELL. V ELECTRIC RAILWAY SYSTEM.

AAAAAAAAA 0N.I'ILED 001'. 11. 1902. RENEWED JULY 8, 1904.

Suveul'oz 6.41602/2906615 UNITED STATES Patented January 3, 1905.

PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE L. CAMPBELL, OF NYACK, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO AMERICAN CONSTRUCTION COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA.

ELEOTRIC-C-RAIALWAY SYSTEM.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 779,204, dated January 3, 1905.

Application filed October 11, 1902- Renewed July 8, 1904. Serial No. 215,807-

To all whom it may concern;

Be it known that I, GEORGE L. CAMPBELL, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of N yack, Rockland county, State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electric-Rail way Systems, of which thefollowing is aspecification.

This invention relates to improvements in electric-railway systems wherein boxes are distributed between the tracks at predetermined intervals to make contact with devices carried by the car to close the circuit.

The object of the invention is to provide an armature which at intervals is raised to impinge a contact to close the circuit, said armature being elevated and held in such position by an elongated magnet carried by the car.

The prime object of the present invention is to provide a cover for each armature having a magnetic portion to cooperate with the magnet to lift the armature and contact-surfaces adjacent the said portion which are engaged by a shoe on the car to close the cir unit, the cover carrying contact-blocks designed to coact with similar blocks carried by the armature, and when the armature is attractedthe two contacts impinge and are held in such relative position as long as the magnet is over the magnetic portion of the cover.

I am aware this broad principle is old; but all such structures known to me are defective in that devices are used which are liable to cause short circuits, and the necessary positiveness of the movement required creates so much frictional resistance that from a commercial standpoint the present devices are failures.

It is my purpose in carrying out the present invention to simplify the mechanism and reduce the friction to a minimum and yet render a positive contact when the armature is elevated.

With these objects in viewI will proceed to describe the details of construction with the assistance of the accompanying drawings, which enables me to accomplish such highlyimportant results.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a diagrammatic view of the application of my invention. Fig. 2 is a similar top plan view. Fig. 3 is a ing of the pocket.

vertical section of my improved contact-box, and Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken at right angles to Fig. 3.

The numeral 1 represents a block composed of any non-conducting material, and it has formed in itapocket 2, lined in its lower portion with any suitablematerial to receive the wear incident to the movement of the armature. The armature A is approximately T- shapedin cross-section, the horizontal member of which normally rests on studs 5 in the block, while the lower vertical portion 6 is confined in the lower part of the pocket. The portion 6 is provided with transverse grooves 7 on all four sides, into which litantifriction-rollers 7, which bear against the lin- On each side of the head 8 of the armature and mounted on the horizontal portion are a pair of laminated contacts 9 9.

The cover 10 is composed of a frame 11, which is embedded in the block I over the pocket 2, and attached to the under side thereof are two laminated contacts 10. The center of the frame 11 is open and receives a laminated magnetic surface 12, composed of alternate strips of iron and wood, which is disposed directly over the top of the armature. I find that by providing a laminated magnetic surface composed of alternate strips of iron and some suitable non-magnetic material the magnets on the car can be spaced quite a distance from the cover and yet attract the armature sufficiently to draw it up to close the circuit. This action is further assisted by the antifriction-bearings. It will of course be understood that when the circuit is closed the parts are so constructed that the armature and the magnetic surface do not touch.

In operation a car is provided with an elongated magnet 15 of sufficient length to just span two boxes and a shoe 16 of about the same length, and immediately the magnet is directly over the box it attracts and lifts the armature. The magnets thus hold the armature elevated and maintain a closed circuit until the next successive box is reached, whereupon the magnet attracts the armature thereln and releases the one before influenced. So long, then, as a magnet is over a box just so long will the armature be lifted and the circuit be maintained.

The magnets and the shoe being the essential elements to close a circuit and as these are located under the car, obviously all danger of a live box being outside the length of a car is avoided. The peril to pedestrians becoming shocked is eliminated as with the conductors now in use. Furthermore, by reason of the armature being raised vertically and having the antifriction-rollers it is sure to drop and open the circuit immediately the magnet passes over the box. Hence-I dispense with any influence other than gravity to return the armature to its normal position, which is of vital importance toward safety in devices of this kind.

The feed wires are connected to springplates 15, through which the current passes to the contacts. The magnets may be of any approved type best adapted to effectually opcrate the armature.

What 1 claim as new is 1. in a contact-box for electric railways, an insulating-block, an armature vertically movable therein, a frame above the armature, contact-blocks on the frame and armature, and a laminated magnetic cover in the frame, in combination with a magnet carried by the car operative solely through the cover to attract the armature.

- 2. In a contact for electric railways, the combination with an insulating-block having a pocket therein, of an armature vertically movable in the pocket, antifriction devices coacting with the armature, a laminated cover over the armature, which comprises alternate strips of non-magnetic material and iron, and a magnet carried by the car to elevate and hold the armature to close the circuit, said armature falling by gravity when the magnet passes from over the armature.

3. In a contact for electric railways, the combination with a block of insulating material having a pocket formed therein, of a vertically-movable armature in the pocket, a frame over the pocket, a laminated magnetic surface in the frame and over the armature composed of alternate strips of iron and nonmagnetic material, and means carried by the car to elevate and hold the magnet to close the circuit said armature falling by gravity when the magnet passes from the armature. 4. In a contact-block for electric railways, an insulating-block formed with a pocket, an armature vertically movable in the pocket, antifriction devices cooperating with the armature, a non magnetic frame above the pocket in the insulating-block, contact-blocks carried by the frame and armature, and a laminated magnetic cover in the frame and above the armature.

Signed by me at New York city, New York, this 2d day of September, 1902.

GEORGE L. CAMPBELL. Witnesses:

JAooB 1. BERGEN, BERTHA A. HAGGERTY. 

